～について
about / regarding
～について attaches to a noun and marks it as the topic of talking, thinking, writing, or asking. It is formed simply as Noun + について.
For English speakers, it maps closely to “about” or “regarding”, as in “talk about history” or “ask about the plan”.
1. Topic of talking or thinking
Use ～について before verbs like 話す (to talk), 考える (to think), or 聞く (to ask) to say what the action is about.
日本の歴史について話します。
“I will talk about Japanese history.”
- 日本（にほん）= Japan
- の = possessive marker (Japan's)
- 歴史（れきし）= history
- について = about, regarding
- 話します（はなします）= will talk
2. ～についての + noun
To connect the phrase directly to a noun, add の: ～についての + noun means “a ... about ...”.
日本文化についての本を読みました。
“I read a book about Japanese culture.”
- 日本文化（にほんぶんか）= Japanese culture
- についての = about (linking to a noun)
- 本（ほん）= book
- を = object marker
- 読みました（よみました）= read (past)
A close relative is ～に関して, which means the same thing but sounds more formal and written. In everyday conversation, ～について is the natural choice.
How to form it
Noun + について (add の before another noun)
- 歴史（れきし）= history → 歴史について（れきしについて）= about history
- 仕事（しごと）= work → 仕事について（しごとについて）= about work
- 映画（えいが）= movie → 映画についての話（えいがについてのはなし）= a conversation about the movie
Key idea
～について points at the content of an action: whatever comes before it is what you talk, think, write, or ask about.
Built on the same stem
Updated .